In another part of the world…
Richmond was smoking a pipe and enjoying himself when a loud booming voice echoed across his glade.
"F.u.c.kboy Richmond, roll out here and die for Daddy Nakiu!"
Richmond sighed and put everything away. He knew that some ill.u.s.trious characters would come barging into his haven after taking that boy under his protection, but he didn't expect the first one to be the most arduous to deal with. Nakiu was well known for his bizarre behavior.
Normally when one gained power, they would look down on everyone and try to oppress or bully those weaker than themselves. This idiot however, was the inverse. Nakiu took perverse pleasure in bullying those stronger than him, especially the hidden powers of the world.
Unfortunately, Nakiu wasn't a typical resident of this part of the world. He was a cultivator from the xianxia section of Boundless which hadn't been released to the public yet. As such, he had a weird physique as well as hard to defend against moves that gave all the hidden powers headaches.
Nakiu wasn't as strong as them on paper, since each section of Boundless had different rules. The sci-fi section had its own physics, the western fantasy also had its own and the Wuxia section too was unique. His abilities were converted over into a form that would suit the laws of the fantasy realm, giving the hidden powers a slight advantage. However, Nakiu was physically invincible due to his Immortal Arts, so killing him was impossible.
Mephisto was his favorite target. A few thousand years ago, Nakiu had broken his way into the devil realm and bullied Mephisto for almost a millennium, giving him a deep seated trauma and fear.
Thinking like that, Richmond realized he was in for quite the experience today.
"Nakiu, lad. Why don't you swallow this pill here? I know you immortals love your pills. This one would boost your powers exponentially," Richmond replied while presenting a red pellet to Nakiu. The item gleamed with a potent glow, telling of an intense power held within.
However, Nakiu just laughed. "Old bastard Richmond, your mother. You take me for a fool? That pill has all the most hazardous and dangerous contents known to man. Your flimsy illusion spell cannot cover its murderous aura to Your Daddy here!!"
Richmond shrugged and cancelled the masking spell, making the attractive red pill turn into a black pellet that could kill a Rank 4 Emperor just by inhaling its odor. He had smashed everything harmful to living organisms he could access into this thing, hoping it could at least give Nakiu a stomachache. That way, Richmond would be able to slowly find a combination of toxins that could finally rid the world of this pest.
"What do you want, Nakiu?" Richmond asked with exasperation.
"I see you took that brat under your wing. RICHMOND!! YOU OLD FOOL!! Did you really think doing so could protect him from me? Let me tell you, I fear no one. I could flatten that boy into paste regardless of consequence and crush his immortal spirit so he'd be unable to reincarnate!" Nakiu laughed arrogantly.
"BUT!! If you agree to fight me for 300 rounds and win, I agree to leave your disciple alone. What do you say?" Nakiu asked with a devilish smile.
"No." Richmond answered simply.
"No?" Nakiu asked dumbly.
"No." Richmond answered finally.
Nakiu blinked in surprise for a few seconds, then nodded. "Okay then, I shall take my leave."
However, just as he turned to leave, his form suddenly blurred before disappearing. When he reformed, he was right behind Richmond.
"HAHA! F.u.c.kboy Richmond, stand there and experience nirvana!" Nakiu laughed while throwing a sucker punch.
"Reincarnation Cycle Fist!"
An image of a wheel appeared behind Nakiu as he thrust his right hand forward. The wheel begun to spin slowly, picking up speed as his hand neared Richmond's body. When he was inches away from landing his powerful blow, the wheel had practically created a tornado with its rapid rotation before sinking into Nakiu's fist.
Seconds away from contact, Richmond finally responded. With a casual flick of his wrist, a transparent azure carapace-like mana shield formed around him. The moment Nakiu's powerful Reincarnation Cycle Fist connected with the barrier, it seemed like it would crack. Seeing this reaction, the assailant couldn't help the evil smile that came upon his face. The very thought of bullying a powerhouse like Richmond till he became traumatized… he was so excited he could shout.
But his dreams were destined to be crushed and teabagged when Richmond's shield endured the massive weight of his fist before bouncing back. The moment it did so, Nakiu discovered the power of reflection and rebound force. It seemed Richmond's shield had a special property: it could absorb immense kinetic energy and process it to deal double damage back.
And the recipient of this recoil was none other than Nakiu himself. Since the Reincarnation Cycle Fist was one of his most powerful moves, it was effectively the same as two versions of himself hitting him at max power.
Nakiu was blown away like a ragdoll. Richmond soon followed after to punish this ingrate.
......….
"F.U.C.K!!" Nakiu swore while wobbling on the spot. To describe him as on the brink of death would be an understatement. In fact, if it wasn't for the weird physique of cultivators, he'd long be six feet under. As it were, he felt like the planet had rolled over him twice. With his robes torn and ragged as well as two black circles around his eyes, Nakiu was the image of pitiful.
Richmond however, looked as good as new. Yet, he was cursing inwardly. It seemed that Nakiu had once again become stronger. Before, it took him but a few minutes to get him to this state. Now, it had more than half an hour. Soon, it would take days, then months, then years…
Then it would reach the point where Richmond would be like Mephisto, unable to damage Nakiu at all and unable to be killed by him either. Richmond felt cold sweat down his back as he dreaded the day he would be bullied.
The reason why most of the hidden powers even hid so deeply was to avoid this maniac.
"F.u.c.kboy Richmond, what do you think you're doing? I said we'd fight 300 rounds! That was only half a round!"
Richmond ignored him before taking out his pipe and returning to his previous relaxation spot. Nakiu however, refused to give up and kept pestering Richmond for hours on end.
.........…
Draco sneezed suddenly. Was someone talking about him somewhere? He wasn't that notable in this timeline though. Maybe another side effect of his elimination of Ratchet.
Right now, he was in a zonal area called the Ancient Caves. It was a level 10-15 area for 4-man parties to grind. Being the first here, Draco naturally had access to all the hidden chests and resources in the area – as long as he could find them.
He wasn't worried about that, as his second point of focus outside the War of Attrition was to gain a solid foundation for his future guild. One thing a guild needed desperately? A strong leader. Well, that and access to rare resources.
In these caves were a pathway to achieving both. After all, even though Draco was trying to make a quick buck from the war, he still wasn't willing to neglect his own leveling. As for his Tradeskill levels, they had gone up impressively after all the forging and potionmaking he did.
｢ Name: Draco
Class: unallocated
Level: 8
Exp: 32%
Str: 4
Dex: 10
End: 8
Int: 10
Spr: 5
Cha: 5
Lck: 5
Combat Skills: Absolute Void, Revenger, Cloud Feet
Tradeskills: Smithing (level 4, 67%), Alchemy (level 3, 42%), Enchanting (level 2, 12%) ｣
So far, he had two more levels to go, meaning he would only earn a total of ten points. With those ten distributed after allocation, he would hit the same ceiling he had in his previous life.
That was, if he didn't factor in Richmond's first gift. Draco took out a vial of bright gold liquid that seemed to attract light into its depths. Such a small thing, yet so valuable. Draco wasn't lying when he told Richmond that many would fight over just this.
｢Ability potion – Consumable
Rank: Legendary
Effect: Grants an ability point in any one field.｣
It may seem like such a small thing, but a consumable that could directly increase attributes permanently was godly in the later stages. Since current players were abhorrently weak, it was the topmost existences who would fight for this item. Draco shuddered when he remembered what happened to the player who received this from Richmond in his past life.
Since it had been the early stage, he decided to sell rather than consume. The moment he showed it to an NPC merchant, he had started a chain of events that would haunt him for the rest of his days.
Draco immediately consumed it. The moment it hit his tongue, he felt like he had kissed the most beautiful angel in existence. Draco couldn't help but m.o.a.n slightly when it moved down his throat and into his stomach. It felt like a gentle and loving wife massaging every part of your body while staring at you with utmost adoration.
When it came to an end, Draco mentally decided to have his strength upped by one point. The moment he did, he felt the energy released from the concoction enter his body and refine it directly. Just like that, he was on the path to perfection.
Next came something Draco had held off with great struggle, even with his indomitable will. He reached into his inventory and pulled out the legendary treasure chest.
The moment he did, the blinding glow of the chest filled the tunnel he was in. Draco had eyes for nothing other than the chest in his hand. The same way those boys stared at Zaine in the native's hamlet was the look he directed onto this poor container. If it had sentience, it would've called for help.
That was because Draco was drooling with a semi-dazed expression. This was a legendary treasure chest! He had a whole 30% chance to get a legendary item! Something he never got even after 15 years of playing as a top rank existence!
Without further ado, Draco opened the chest. The glow suddenly lit up the cavern and enveloped it. A pillar of golden light shot out of the Ancient Caves towards the sky, parting the clouds and breaching the atmospherical limit.
Every monster, player and NPC within a hundred thousand kilometers noticed what was going on. Some were scared, some were enthralled and some were aroused. Those who fell in the latter category didn't stop to admire the lightshow because they knew what it meant.
Someone was opening a legendary treasure chest! Normally, they wouldn't dare dream of accosting someone who had the strength to acquire one, but the fact that the owner opened it at such an obscure location meant one thing. They were fearful that someone would snatch their bounty.
Naturally, that meant they weren't confident that they had the power to protect it. As long as they could get there before the others and steal it… they didn't want to think further.
Various streams of light could be seen heading towards the golden pillar, while some shadows darted on the ground at speeds that would frighten Barry Allen.
Draco, who was the cause of all this, cursed. Naturally, he had never opened a legendary treasure chest before so he had no idea it would have this effect. He had opened countless epic treasure chests and knew that a lightshow would occur, hence he chose the derelict Ancient Caves to open it. At most, it should've lit up the whole cave, not the whole horizon!
Then again, his heart was pounding with anticipation. Part of him, specifically the analytical part, reconciled itself with that fact that he would probably be getting an epic item. After all, he had but a 30% chance of gaining a legendary item.
Even after that, whether he could leave here alive with it was in question. But still, even knowing that, his heart thumped wildly.
Suddenly, a blinding glow more intense than what was being displayed outside penetrated his eyelids, but didn't cause him discomfort. When the light eventually receded, he saw something that made his mind tremble.
｢Congratulations on opening: Legendary Treasure Chest
Reward:
Dragon Soul｣
A small golden dragon flapped it's wings as it stared at Draco coldly. Suddenly, Draco felt the weight of the world drop atop his shoulders and his motions ceased. He knew what this was: Sacred Force! That meant that this tiny soul belonged to a divine being!
After coldly appraising Draco, the Dragon snorted and flew into his forehead. Immediately, a terrible pain assaulted him as the Dragon ruffled through his memories, both of his actions in Boundless and in his measly 21 years of life in the real world.
For some reason, his memories of the future went undetected from the invader.
After carefully analyzing Draco, the tiny soul smiled unkindly. It breathed out and Draco felt like a surgeon had opened his skull, pouring acid into his cranium. Due to the Sacred Force, he couldn't even move. He could only endure in total silence as waves of agony burned through him.
In such a state, it was impossible to measure time. To Draco, the seconds stretched into days and the days into years. After what felt like a thousand lifetimes, the pain finally receded and the Sacred Force withdrew into his body, but not completely. An abysmally small amount of it merged into his aura, giving him an intense bearing that most mortals couldn't face.
People who looked at Draco would forever feel apprehensive, as of staring at a slumbering dragon. They would do everything to stay out of his way, unless they were significantly stronger than him.
Just when Draco was about to question what the hell happened, a screen popped up before him.
｢Dragon Soul – Fusion item
Rank: Legendary
Effects:
Passive 1 – Sacred Force: Trace amounts of Sacred Force leaks out of the user, acting as a deterrent to monsters, NPCs and players at the user's level and below.
Passive 2 – Dragon Legacy: Possessing a small part of the soul of a Divine Dragon, the user's power is magnified permanently by a factor of 10.
Active 1 – Dragon's Force: Activating this skill gives the user a boost of power by a factor of 700% for 30 seconds. Cooldown: 12 hours.
Further abilities can only be unlocked by attaining a higher class tier.｣
Draco started hyperventilating. This was… this was too much. He hadn't noticed it, but he truly felt more resting and explosive power than before. Describing it as a 10x increase seemed accurate to Draco, as he felt like he could crush ten of himself at the same level without breaking a sweat.
And then there was the beserk.
Draco realized that this wasn't the time to celebrate. Despite his massive power boost, he was still a weakling at Rank 0. Not even counting Rank 1 foes, some of those speeding here might be Rank 2 and above. He couldn't fight such people even with a hundred of his current self.
For now he could only flee. Draco pulled out a town portal scroll and activated it. The channeling time was 30 seconds with such a basic scroll and Draco cursed. The moment he hit Rank 1 and got access to the cities, he would embark on a quest that would grant him a more convenient mode of transportation.
Till then however, he could only make do with this flimsy scroll. As the seconds ticked away, he could see beams of light converging on his area. In less than ten seconds, the fastest of them would arrive.
Meanwhile, he had fifteen seconds to go on the scroll.
Draco could only watch as the first to arrive darted towards him with a cold glint in his eye. "Brat, it is your own misfortune for opening such a bounty here! Die knowing you died at the hands of the greatest thief, Fleetfoot!"
With those bold words came the gleam of a dagger's blade as it plunged towards Draco's jugular. Draco closed his eyes and swore internally. He should've blinked first before using the scroll, but his panic made him mix it up. Even if it wouldn't save him, it would've bought him the seconds he need to escape.
Now, even if he managed to flee, there was someone who saw his face. He could easily spread information about him and all the hidden powers would come after him. Not even Richmond could protect him from that fate.
He would end up just like that guy from his past life who had his account crippled.
However, something that shocked both parties occurred. The Dragon that was relaxing in Draco's soul opened its eyes and flew out. With a look of disdain, it simply breathed out an ethereal white flame that engulfed Fleetfoot.
The thief's screams echoed around the cave and even outside it, causing all those speeding over to pause as goosebumps popped up on their skins from the sound. Someone was being horrifically tortured in there. Whether it was the holder of the treasure or someone like them who wanted to steal it, they couldn't tell. What they did know was that if they entered, there was a chance they would experience that too.
It was that fatal pause that gave Draco enough time to disappear. When those who came to rob him overcame their terror, they bolted into the caverns and swore. If only they hadn't stopped!
Suddenly, intense pressure fell on them as they felt the mental presence of a hidden power. "Ants under my foot, where is the holder of the treasure?"
One of the men who managed to speak under the intense force ground out a few words. "Se-Senior… he... es... escaped…"
"Oh? Is that so? Then you all don't need to live anymore," The voice casually spoke as they all burst into blood mist that dispersed into the wind…
"It seems I have to come out of hiding for this one…"
With the recession of the voice, the area relaxed and the signs of the slaughter passed way.